Transport and gathering system

ABSTRACT

A modular transport and gathering system used for moving a material to be fed ( 250 ) in a direction of transport and comprising a plurality of transport modules (A, B) having input-side and output-side end sections. Each transport module (A, B) includes a transport means in the form of an endless means ( 100, 110 ) guided over a front and a rear roll ( 104, 108, 114, 116 ), a drive ( 210, 212, 210′, 212′ ) for driving the transport means, and a plurality of pusher means ( 102 ) attached to the endless means at predetermined intervals, wherein said plurality of transport modules (A, B) is arranged relative to one another in such a way that a respective input-side end section of a first transport module (A) and a respective output-side end section of a second transport module (B) define an overlapping area ( 200 ) in which, over part of the length of said overlapping area ( 200 ), a respective pusher means ( 102 ) of the transport modules (A, B) defining said overlapping area ( 200 ) engages a material to be fed ( 250′ ) that is to be transported, and wherein the pusher means ( 102 ) engaging the material to be fed ( 250′ ) and belonging to the rear transport module (A) in the direction of transport is guided in such a way that it tilts away in a direction opposite to the direction of transport when it dives downwards upon reaching the front roll ( 104 ) of the rear transport module (A) in the direction of transport.

The present invention refers to a transport and gathering system of thetype used e.g. in paper processing operations. By means of such asystem, packs as well as individual sheets can be transported, gatheredand transferred to a subsequent machine for further processing, in astart/stop operation at a high cycle rate.

Paper transport and gathering systems are primarily used by largeenterprises, banks, insurance companies, service-rendering enterprises,etc. In these enterprises, the transport and gathering systems serve toprocess large amounts of paper, such as invoices, reminders, statementsof account, insurance policies, cheques or advertising leaflets.

Normal transport and gathering systems are provided with a continuous,driven chain or a driven transport belt, which serves to transport e.g.packs of paper sheets. The endless transport belt has arranged thereonpusher lugs arranged behind respective packs in the direction oftransport. When the packs are decelerated, spreading out must beprevented by means of holding-down devices for the paper in such atransport and gathering system. The processing of different densities ofpacks can only be carried out by resilient or movable holding-downdevices. The less uniform the density of packs is, the more critical isthe processing. The endless belt or the continuous chain having thepusher lugs secured thereto must be lengthened depending on the size ofthe system. When the system is in operation, such lengthening is oftendifficult, since this has the effect that the compartment distancesbetween the pusher lugs vary.

The transport rolls or transport belts used in known transport andgathering systems for holding down packs on the transport means areunsuitable for accelerating and decelerating thick packs or packs ofdifferent thicknesses, since, when held down by such transport rolls ortransport belts, thick packs spread out when they are acclerated anddecelerated. Furthermore, such holding-down devices cause dynamicproblems when packs of strongly varying thicknesses are beingtransported.

A further disadvantage of the known transport and gathering system is tobe seen in the fact that a central drive must be provided for the wholegathering path. This central drive must be designed for the maximumperformance of the system. Such a transport and gathering system can nolonger be enlarged when it has reached a certain degree of enlargement.All the drive elements used must be designed for maximum powertransmission. This requires a very massive and heavy structrual design,e.g. due to the use of chain drives. From a certain cylce rate onwards,these known systems are, in view of their high mass, no longer suitablefor a start/stop operation.

Furthermore, such a known transport and gathering system must beaccelerated slowly and decelerated slowly. In the start/stop operation,this takes place over a plurality of cycles. This is the reason for thefact that an optimum through-feed rate is not achieved in the case ofdifferent collecting amounts and different cycle times resultingtherefrom. When a malfunction occurs, the system is not capable ofstopping immediately due to the massive drive, and this can result in adestruction of several packs located on the transport and gatheringsystem.

Starting from the above-mentioned prior art, it is the object of thepresent invention to provide a transport and gathering system for movinga material to be fed in a direction of transport, said transport andgathering system being modular and theoretically expandable withoutlimit, and the drives used in said transport and gathering system beingexclusively low-mass drives.

This object is achieved by a transport and gathering system according toclaim 1.

The present invention provides a transport and gathering system formoving a material to be fed in a direction of transport, comprising aplurality of transport modules having input-side and output-side endsections, each transport module having the following features:

a transport means in the form of at least one endless means guided overa front and a rear roll;

at least one drive for driving the transport means; and

a plurality of pusher means attached to the transport means atpredetermined intervals;

wherein said plurality of transport modules is arranged relative to oneanother in such a way that a respective input-side end section of afirst transport module and a respective output-side end section of asecond transport module define an overlapping area in which, at leastover part of the length of said overlapping area, a respective pushermeans of the transport modules defining said overlapping area engages amaterial to be fed that is to be transported;

and wherein the pusher means engaging the material to be fed andbelonging to the rear transport module in the direction of transport isguided in such a way that it tilts away in a direction opposite to thedirection of transport when it dives downwards upon reaching the frontroll of the rear transport module in the direction of transport.

Preferably, each transport module comprises in addition a plurality ofstopper means, each stopper means being attached to the endless meansahead of a pusher means, when seen in the direction of transport, and ata predetermined distance therefrom. The transport means of eachtransport module consists preferably of a plurality of endless meanswhich are guided over rolls and which are arranged side by side in thedirection of transport, whereas the pusher and stopper means consist ofa plurality of pushers and stoppers, each pusher and stopper,respectively, being attached to a separate endless means.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the transport meansof each transport module comprises two endless means having pushersattached thereto and two endless means having stoppers attached thereto.The overlapping area is preferably formed in that the endless means of afirst transport module are arranged in a first structure, gaps beingformed between said endless means, and in that the endless means of asecond transport module are arranged in a second structure. Therespective endless means of the second transport module arranged in thesecond structure fit into the gaps formed by the endless means of thefirst transport module which are arranged in said first structure, andvice versa. In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention,the individual transport modules are secured to a carrier unit such thatthey can be lowered in such a way that the endless means of the varioustransport modules can easily be interengaged for forming the overlappingarea.

According to the present invention each transport module is providedwith a separate drive for driving the transport means. The transportmodules represent operational modules which can be pretested and whichcan easily be integrated e.g. in paper handling systems evensubsequently at the customer's premises. The number of modules united inone system is not limited. The drives for the individual transportmodules must only be designed for the performance in their transportmodule. Hence, the drive is of very low mass. For this reason, astart/stopp operation can be realized in a very high performance range.An optimization of the through-feed rate in the case of varying amountsof material fed, e.g. due to different collecting amounts, can berealized in the start/stop operation in an optimum manner. According tothe present invention, it is not necessary to adapt the through-feedrate to the longest feed time. Idle cycles are not necessary either.When malfunction occurs, the transport and gathering system according tothe present invention can be stopped at each cycle end.

The transport and gathering system according to the present inventionhas a modular structural design. Using two types of transport modules,which are shown in a sectional view in FIG. 2A, a transport andgathering system of arbitrary length can be composed. For the purpose ofservicing and assembly, each transport module is suspended from a guidecolumn preferably such that it can be lowered. This guarantees access toall components. Also the endless means having pushers and stopperssecured thereto and referred to as pusher paths and stopper paths in thefollowing have a modular structural design and can be installed in orremoved from the basic transport modules as a complete unit.

Each basic transport module is provided with a separate drive for thepusher paths and the stopper paths. Hence, the driving power of themotors does not depend on the number of modules, but only on thematerial to be fed which is to be transported by a module. All transportelements only have to be dimensioned for the power to be transmitted inthe transport module in question. The arbitrary number of combinabletransport modules is based on this principle.

In accordance with a preferred embodiment according to the presentinvention, each transport module comprises two pusher paths and twostopper paths. Due to the low-mass structural design, a high processingperformance is guaranteed in the start/stop operation. By the optionalexistence of pushers and stoppers, a very high cycle rate can beachieved in the start/stop operation. The material is guided duringacceleration as well as during deceleration as in a compartment definedby a respective pusher means and a stopper means. Since the stoppermeans holds the material together during deceleration, additionalholding-down devices are not even necessary when big packs are dealtwith. Hence, optimum transport is achieved when individual sheets andthick packs are processed in a mixed operation. The material does notspread out during deceleration.

In the following, preferred embodiments of the present invention areexplained in detail making reference to the drawings enclosed, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a longitudinal section of a transport module according tothe present invention;

FIG. 2 shows a top view of a transport and gathering system according tothe present invention which is composed of two transport modules;

FIG. 3A shows a cross-sectional view of two transport modules accordingto the present invention, one transport module being lowered;

FIG. 3B shows a cross-section of the overlapping area of the transportmodules of FIG. 3A, when said transport modules are combined;

FIG. 4A shows a side view of a pusher and FIG. 4B a side view of astopper, and the position of said pusher and of said stopper on anendless means and relative to a guide means, whereas FIG. 4C shows asectional view of a pusher and of a stopper;

FIG. 5 shows a transport module according to the present invention in apartial longitudinal section showing an endless means, pushers securedto said endless means as well as intermediate trays;

FIG. 6 shows a transport module according to the present invention in apartial longitudinal section showing an endless means, stoppers securedto said endless means as well as intermediate trays; and

FIG. 7 shows a fragmentary view showing the front roll of a fronttransport module in the direction of transport.

In the following, a preferred embodiment of the present invention willbe explained in detail making reference to the figures. FIG. 1 shows alongitudinal section through a transport module according to the presentinvention for transporting a material to be fed in a direction oftransport X. The transport module according to the preferred embodimentof the present invention comprises two endless means each havingarranged thereon a plurality of pushers 102. In the preferredembodiment, the endless means consist of endless belts, one of saidendless belts 100 being shown in FIG. 1. The endless belt 100 is guidedover rolls 104, 106, 108, said roll 108 being adapted to be driven e.g.by means of a motor. Furthermore, the transport module comprises twoendless means each having arranged thereon a plurality of stoppers 112.In the preferred embodiment, also these endless means are endless belts,one of said endless belts 110 being indicated by broken lines in FIG. 1.The endless belt 110 is guided over rolls 114, 116, said roll 114, forexample, being adapted to be driven by means of a motor. In thefollowing, an endless belt having pushers attached thereto willgenerally be referred to as pusher path, whereas an endless belt havingstoppers attached thereto will be referred to as stopper path.

In the preferred embodiment, the pushers 102 and the stoppers 112 areguided by a guide means comprising an upper guide rail for each stopperand pusher path as well as a lower guide rail for each stopper andpusher path so as to guide the movements of the stoppers and pushers.FIG. 1 shows an upper guide rail 120 associated with the endless belt100 and a lower guide rail 122 associated with the endless belt 100. Thestructural design of the pushers 102, stoppers 112 and of the guidemeans will be explained in detail hereinbelow with reference to FIGS. 4Aand 4B.

FIG. 1 additionally shows intermediate trays, one of said intermediatetrays being designated by reference numeral 130. Units to be fed 135 canbe positioned on this intermediate tray 130, said units 135 beingintended to be added to the material to be fed between a pusher 102 andan associated stopper 112.

The broken line 140 represents the path along which the upper edge ofeach pusher 102 moves when the endless belt 100 is driven e.g. by meansof a motor. The broken line 145 represents the path along which theparts of the stoppers 112 located furthest away from the endless belt110 of the stopper path move. The pusher paths and the stopper paths aredriven by different motors.

For transporting a material to be fed, which is arranged between apusher and an associated stopper, the motors of the pusher paths and ofthe stopper paths are driven simultaneously. Whereas the stoppers 112move in a path between the paper travelling plane, which is the upperside of the guide strip 120 in the transport module shown in FIG. 1, andthe intermediate trays 130, which are also referred to as intermediateplanes, the pushers, which project further above their endless belts,protrude beyond the intermediate plane. Hence, a unit to be fed 135,which is positioned on an intermediate tray 130, will be engaged by thepusher that arrives at the intermediate tray 130 after the unit to befed 135 has been placed on the intermediate tray 130. The pusher pushesthe unit to be fed 135 away from the intermediate tray 130 and over aninclined plane 142 into the compartment formed by this pusher and thestopper associated therewith, when the pusher is moved past theintermediate tray 130. The unit to be fed 135 is now arranged on thematerial to be fed which is already positioned in this compartment.Since the stoppers 112 project neither into the intermediate plane norinto a paper feed means arranged above the intermediate plane, a largetime window exist for feeding the unit to be fed into the intermediateplane or intermediate tray.

FIG. 2 shows a top view of a transport and gathering system according tothe present invention, which is composed of two transport modules A andB. Transport module A comprises two pusher paths 220, 220′ and twostopper paths 222, 222′. Transport module B comprises two pusher paths224, 224′ and two stopper paths 226, 226′. The pusher paths 220, 220′224, 224′ and the stopper paths 222, 222′, 226, 226′ have an identicalstructural design but are arranged in different ways relative to oneanother, as can be best be seen in FIG. 3A, so as to permit theformation of an overlapping area 200 by an end section of transportmodule A on the output side and by an end section of transport module Bon the input side. Transport module A is adapted to be verticallyadjusted via a guide column 202, as can clearly be seen hereinbelow withreference to FIG. 3A. In the same way, transport module B is adapted tobe vertically adjusted via a guide column 204. The pusher paths 220,220′ are driven via a pusher path drive 210. The stopper paths 222, 222′are driven via a separate stopper path drive 212. In the same way, thepusher paths 224, 224′ are driven via a pusher path drive 210′, whereasthe stopper paths 226, 226′ are driven via a separate stopper path drive212′. The endless belts of the pusher and stopper paths can be toothedbelts, for example, which are driven by gears attached to a shaft, saidshaft being driven by a motor.

In FIG. 2, stacks of material to be fed are additionally shown, saidstacks of material being moved by means of the transport modules A andB. One stack of material to be fed 250′ is located in the overlappingarea 200, said stack of material to be fed 250′ being engaged by thepusher of transport module A as well as by the pusher of transportmodule B in said area.

In FIG. 3A a cross-sectional view of transport modules A and B is shown.Transport module A has been lowered in height, as can, for example, bedone by means of the guide column 202. The pusher paths 220, 220′ andthe stopper paths 222, 222′ of transport module A are arranged in aparallel juxtaposed mode of arrangement in a first structure. The pusherpaths 224, 224′ and the stopper paths 226, 226′ of transport module Bare arranged in a parallel juxtaposed mode of arrangement in a secondstructure. The pusher paths 220, 220′ of transport module A are spacedfrom one another with respect to a symmetry axis Y of said structures insuch a way that there is room for the pusher paths 224, 224′ oftransport module B between said pusher paths 220, 220′, as can be seenin FIG. 3B. The stopper paths 222, 222′ are arranged outside of thepusher paths 220, 220′ directly adjacent thereto. The stopper paths 226,226′ of transport module B are arranged outside of the pusher paths 224,224′ and are spaced from said pusher paths 224, 224′ in such a way thatpusher path 220 and stopper path 222 fit in between pusher path 224 andstopper path 226, whereas pusher path 220′ and stopper path 222′ fit inbetween pusher path 224′ and stopper path 226′.

FIG. 3B shows a cross-section of the transport unit, which is shown inFIG. 2, in the overlapping area 200. It can clearly be seen that in theoverlapping area the pushers of transport module A as well as those oftransport module B are in engagement with the material to be fed 250′.In the same way, the stoppers of transport module A as well as those oftransport module B are in engagement with the material to be fed 250′ inthe overlapping area 200. FIG. 3B additionally shows the intermediatetray 130 on which a unit to be fed 135 is positioned. As can easily beseen, the pushers are so high that they project above the intermediatetray 130, whereas the height of the stoppers is so small that saidstoppers pass below the intermediate tray. As can additionally be seen,the intermediate tray 130 of the preferred embodiment is provided withgaps through which the pushers run while engaging the unit to be fed 135which is located on said intermediate tray 130.

When a material to be fed is transferred from a transport module locatedat the rear in the direction of transport to a transport module locatedat the front in the direction of transport, it is of essentialimportance that, when arriving at the front roll 104 of the reartransport module in the direction of transport, the pushers of said reartransport module dive rearwards and vanish behind the material to be fedso as to avoid an undesirable acceleration of the material to be fed inthe direction of transport when the pushers tip over to the front.

A preferred embodiment of the pusher according to the present inventionis shown in FIG. 4A. A preferred embodiment of a stopper according tothe present invention is shown in FIG. 4B. FIG. 4C shows sectional viewsof the pushers shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B.

The pusher 102 shown in FIG. 4A is provided with a component 402 whichis rigidly secured to an endless belt or transport belt 100 implementedas a toothed belt in the case of the preferred embodiment. The component402, which is rigidly secured to the transport belt 100, is connectedvia a pivot joint 404 to a component 406 which is adapted to be tiltedrelative to the transport belt. The tiltable component 406 of the pusher102 is thus adapted to be tilted forward and backward parallel to thedirection of transport. A guide roll 408 is rotatably attached to aportion of the tiltable component 406 of the pusher, said portion beinglocated at the front when seen in the direction of transport. As canbest be seen in FIG. 4C, the tiltable component 406 of the pusher isbiased by means of a spring 410 relative to the pusher component 402,which is rigidly secured to the transport belt 100. The pusher isadditionally provided with a section 412, which is arranged essentiallyat right angles to the transport belt at a transport position; saidsection 412 can be provided with a corrugated or serrated front surface.

FIG. 4B shows a stopper according to a preferred embodiment of thepresent invention. The stopper is provided with a component 422 which isrigidly secured to an endless belt or transport belt 110 implementedagain as a toothed belt in the case of the preferred embodiment. Thiscomponent 422, which is rigidly secured to the transport belt 110, isconnected via a pivot joint 424 to a tiltable stopper component 426. Bymeans of this pivot joint, the tiltable stopper component is adapted tobe tilted forward and backward parallel to the direction of transport. Aguide roll 428 is rotatably attached to a portion of the tiltablestopper component 426 which is located at the rear when seen in thedirection of transport. As can best be seen in FIG. 4C, the tiltablestopper component 426 is biased with the aid of a biasing means 430,e.g. a spring, relative to the stopper component which is fixedlysecured to the transport belt 110. The tiltable stopper component isprovided with a section 432, which is arranged essentially at rightangles to the transport belt 110 at a transport position, said section432 being arranged in a front portion of said stopper component whenseen in the direction of transport.

The transport belts 100 and 110 of the pusher and stopper paths of thetransport and gathering system according to the present invention arearranged relative to one another in such a way that a respective pusherand a respective stopper define a compartment having a predeterminedlength in the direction of transport. When such a compartment isdefined, section 412 of the pusher is used for pushing a material to befed, whereas section 432 of the stopper, which can also be provided witha corrugated or serrated surface facing rearwards in the direction oftransport, represents in the direction of transport a forward stop forthe material to be fed so as to prevent said material from spreadingout.

The pusher and the stopper are guided by a guide means during theirmovement which is imparted thereto by the transport belts 100 and 110,respectively. The guide means for the pusher 102 consists of an upperguide strip 440 and of a lower guide strip 442. The guide means for thestopper 112 consists of an upper guide strip 444 and of a lower guidestrip 446. A cross-section of these guide strips is shown in FIG. 4C.The lower guide strips 442 and 446, respectively, serve to guide therigid components 402, 422 of the pusher and of the stopper along theirpath of movement, said rigid components being secured to the transportbelt. Said lower guide strips 442 and 446 are provided with a centralportion of elevated height (FIG. 4C). According to a preferredembodiment, the rigid components of the pusher and of the stopper areimplemented such that they have two downwardly directed legs havingarranged between them the respective transport belt, said legs engagingadditionally between them, below the transport belt, the central portionof elevated height of the lower guide strips 442, 446. This guaranteesthat the rigid components of the pusher and of the stopper are reliablylaterally and vertically.

The upper guide strips 440 and 444 of the guide means for the pusher andfor the stopper serve to hold the tiltable components of the pusher andof the stopper in the area of the transport path, i.e. in the area wherea material to be fed is transported, in a pedetermined orientationrelative to the transport belt, i.e. at a predetermined transportposition, i.e. an orientation at which the sections 412 of the pusherand 432 of the stopper are oriented essentially at right angles to thetransport belt. The upper guide strips 440 and 444 can be implementedsuch that they have a flat upper surface 450 and 452, respectively, onwhich the material to be transported, e.g. paper, stacks of paper orpacks, are guided.

The tiltable pusher component 406 and the tiltable stopper component 426are each biased with the aid of the biasing means 410 and 430,respectively, in such a way that the guide rolls 408 and 428 of thepusher and of the stopper are forced upwards against the lower edge ofthe upper guide strip 440 and 444. This has the effect that therespective guide roll moves along the lower edge of the upper guidestrip. The biasing means 410 of the pusher is implemented such that thepusher tilts backwards in the direction of transport when the guide roll408 moves out of engagement with the lower edge of the upper guide strip440. This backward tilting movement of the pusher is delimited by arotational angle delimiting means 460 which is attached to a lower partof the tiltable pusher component 406, defining the rear part when seenin the direction of transport, and which engages the transport belt inthe case of a full tilting deflection. The biasing means of the stopperis implemented such that the tiltable stopper component 426 tiltsforwards in the direction of transport when the guide roll 428 moves outof engagement with the lower edge of the upper guide strip 444. Thistilting is delimited by a rotational angle delimiting means 462 which isattached to a lower part of the tiltable stopper component 426 definingthe front part when seen in the direction of transport and which engagesthe transport belt in the case of a full tilting deflection.

FIG. 5 shows in an illustrative representation the curved path 140 inbroken lines, said curved path being the path of movement of a pusher102 during the movement imparted thereto by the transport belt 100. At500, when the guide roll 408 of the pusher comes into engagement withthe upper guide strip, the tiltable component 406 of the pusher moves toa position at which the section 412 thereof is orientated essentially atright angles to the transport belt. As can be seen from the figure, theguide strip 120 of the preferred embodiment is extended around the roll108 down to the lower side of said roll in such a way that a pusher hasalready reached its transport position when it arrives at the transportpath that begins after the rear roll 108.

The pusher then passes along the whole transport path at this positionuntil it arrives at the front roll 104. At the front roll 104, the guideroll 408 of the pusher moves out of engagement with the upper guidestrip 120. This has the effect that the tiltable pusher component 406 isdrawn backwards by the biasing spring until the rotational angledelimiting means 460 of the pusher, which comes into engagement with thetransport belt, stops the tilting. By means of such a pusher and guidearrangement it is therefore guaranteed that a pusher means belonging toa transport module located at the rear in the direction of transport andengaging a material to be fed tilts backwards in a direction opposite tothe direction of transport when it dives downwards upon arriving at thefront roll of the transport module located at the rear in the directionof transport. The material to be fed can thus be transferred to atransport module located at the front in the direction of transportwithout any acceleration of said material by section 412 of the pusherbeing caused.

In FIG. 5 a support means 520 is additionally shown, which generallyserves the purpose of preventing the transport belt and the pushers 102attached thereto from sagging when said transport belt 110 returns tothe rear guide roll 108. A device of the same kind is shown for astopper path at 620 in FIG. 6.

FIG. 6 shows in an illustrative representation the curved path of theupper end of each stopper 112, said curved path being the path ofmovement of said stopper during the movement imparted thereto by thetransport belt. When the guide roll 528 of a stopper 112 does not comeinto engagement with the upper guide strip 444 of a stopper path, thestopper is biased by the biasing means 430 towards a position at whichthe rotational angle delimiting means 462 of the stopper rests on thetransport belt. This position is occupied e.g. by the stoppers returningfrom the front roll 116 to the rear roll 114. The stoppers run aroundthe roll 114 at this position, whereupon the guide roll 428 of thestopper comes into engagement with the upper guide strip 444 at point630. This has the effect that the stopper is tilted to the position oftransport at which section 432 of said stopper is arranged essentiallyat right angles to the transport belt. Occupying this position, thestopper passes along the transport path until the guide roll 428 of thestopper moves out of engagement with the upper guide strip when thestopper dives downwards at the front roll 116. Following this, thestopper returns to the position at which the rotational angle delimitingmeans 462 thereof rests on the transport belt.

It follows that the stoppers 112 are biased by their respective biasingmeans 430 in such a way that the tiltable part 426 thereof tilts upwardsin a direction opposite to the direction of transport when the guideroll 428 of the stopper 112 comes into engagement with the upper guidestrip 444 associated with the respective endless belt to which thestopper 112 is secured. It is therefore guaranteed that the stopper of atransport module located at the front in the direction of transport willnot decelerate a material to be fed, which is transferred from atransport module located at the rear in the direction of transport tothe front transport module, nor engage from below said material to befed.

FIG. 7 shows the rear part of a further embodiment of a stopper pathincluding the guide roll 116 on which the transport belt 110 moves. Theguide means of this stopper path differs from the guide means that hasbeen explained with regard to the preferred embodiment of the presentinvention. In the case of the guide means shown in FIG. 7, the upperguide strip consists of a rigid part 744 and of a movable part 746. Themovable part 746 can be raised e.g. by means of a magnet in the area ofthe guide roll 428. Already prior to reaching the roll 116, the stoppercan in this way be forced into a position 750 at which the section 432of said stopper is lowered below the paper travelling plane. The lengthof the actively adjustable guide strip portion 746 preferablycorresponds at least to the length of the whole format adjustment range.

Such an actively adjustable guide strip is particularly suitable for usein a transport module arranged at the end of modular transport andgathering system. The stoppers are therefore adapted to be lowered atthe outlet of the transport and gathering system in the whole formatadjustment range. In this way, it is possible that a machine havingtransferred thereto a material to be fed from the transport andgathering system can remove said material to be fed from the transportand gathering system when said system is in operation and also when itis standing still. The transport and gathering system and the machinefollowing said system are therefore decoupled.

Although transport modules having pusher and stopper means whichcomprise two pushers and two stoppers, respectively, have been describedwith reference to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, apusher and stopper means according to the present invention can consistof an arbitrary number of pushers and stoppers. In the preferredembodiment two pushers have been used, which are arranged side by sideon different transport belts, since this guarantees that a material tobe fed, e.g. paper, is reliably pushed along the transport path. In thesame way, two stoppers reliably prevent the material to be fed fromspreading out.

Furthermore, arbitrary arragements of pusher and stopper paths, whichexceed those shown in FIG. 3A, are possible according to the presentinvention as long as the pusher and stopper paths of two transportmodules located one behind the other are arranged such that they permitthe formation of an overlapping area.

The transport modules according to the preferred embodiment of thepresent invention comprise transport means having attached theretopusher means as well as stopper means. It is, however, apparent that amodular transport and gathering system according to the presentinvention can be realized with transport means which do not have anystopper means.

What is claimed is:
 1. A transport and gathering system for moving amaterial to be fed in a direction of transport, comprising a pluralityof transport modules having input-side and output-side end sections,each transport module comprising: a transport means in the form of atleast one endless means guided over a front and a rear roll; at leastone drive for driving the transport means; and a plurality of pushermeans attached to the endless means at predetermined intervals; whereinsaid plurality of transport modules is arranged relative to one anotherin such a way that a respective input-side end section of a firsttransport module and a respective output-side end section of a secondtransport module define an overlapping area in which, at least over partof the length of said overlapping area, a respective pusher means of thetransport modules defining said overlapping area engages a material tobe fed that is to be transported; wherein the pusher means engaging thematerial to be fed and belonging to a rear transport module in thedirection of transport is guided in such a way that it tilts away in adirection opposite to the direction of transport when it dives downwardsupon reaching the front roll of the rear transport module in thedirection of transport; and wherein a plurality of stopper means isprovided, a respective stopper means being associated with a respectivepusher means and being tiltably arranged on at least one endless meansahead of said pusher means, when seen in the direction of transport, andat a predetermined distance therefrom, such that a pusher means and anassociated stopper means define a compartment for a material disposedbetween the pusher means and the stopper means, wherein the length ofthe compartment in the direction of transport can be adjusted such thatit substantially corresponds to the length of the material disposedbetween the pusher means and the stopper means, such that the stoppermeans represents a forward stop for a material and prevents the materialfrom spreading out.
 2. A transport and gathering system according toclaim 1, wherein the transport means of each transport module consistsof at least two parallel endless means guided over rolls, the at leastone pusher means being attached to one endless means and the at leastone stopper means being attached to another endless means.
 3. Atransport and gathering system according to claim 2, wherein thetransport means of each transport module consists of four parallelendless means which are guided over rolls, and wherein the at least onepusher means consists of two pushers and the at least one stopper meansconsists of two stoppers, each of said two pushers and each of said twostoppers being attached to a separate endless means.
 4. A transport andgathering system according to claim 3, wherein the overlapping area ofthe output-side end section of a first transport module and of theinput-side end section of a second transport module is formed in thatthe endless means of the first transport module are arranged in a firststructure in such a way that gaps are formed between said endless meansin which the endless means of the second transport module are arrangedin a second structure.
 5. A transport and gathering system according toclaim 1, wherein each of said plurality of transport modules is attachedto a carrier unit such that it is vertically adjustable.
 6. A transportand gathering system according to claim 1, wherein each transport moduleis additionally provided with a guide means which is arranged relativeto each of said endless means in such a way that, in the area betweenthe front and rear rolls over which each of said endless means isguided, each of the pushers and stoppers is engaged and guided by saidguide means.
 7. A transport and gathering system according to claim 6,wherein the guide means is additionally provided with supportingsurfaces, the pushers and stoppers projecting beyond said supportingsurfaces in such a way that a material to be fed, which is positionedbetween associated pushers and stoppers, is transported on saidsupporting surfaces of said guide means.
 8. A transport and gatheringsystem according to claim 6, wherein the guide means comprises a guidestrip per endless means, said guide strip being arranged above therespective endless means, and wherein the pushers and the stoppersconsist of a component which is adapted to be tilted parallel to thedirection of movement and of a component which is rigidly secured to theendless means, said components being connected by means of a pivotjoint, the tiltable component being adapted to be biased via a biasingmeans towards a predetermined position relative to the endless means,each pusher and stopper being provided with a guide roll which isattached to the tiltable component thereof, said guide roll being biasedwith the aid of the biasing means towards the first guide strip in thearea of the transport path, the biasing means of each pusher meanscausing the tiltable component of each pusher to tilt away in adirection opposite to the direction of transport when the guide rollmoves out of engagement with the guide strip.
 9. A transport andgathering system according to claim 8, wherein the biasing means of eachstopper means acts so as to bias the tiltable component of each stopperof the stopper means in such a way that said tiltable component of thestopper tilts upwards in a direction opposite to the direction oftransport when the guide roll of the stopper comes into engagement withthe guide strip which is associated with the endless means having saidstopper secured thereto.
 10. A transport and gathering system accordingto claim 8, wherein the pushers and the stoppers are implemented suchthat they are provided with a rotational angle delimiting means on thetiltable component thereof, said rotational angle delimiting meansdelimiting, when the guide roll does not engage the guide strip, arotational movement of the pushers and of the stoppers about the pivotjoint thereof, said rotational movement being caused by the biasingmeans.
 11. A transport and gathering system according to claim 8,wherein the guide means additionally comprises a further guide strip perendless means, which is arranged below the respective endless means,said further guide strip guiding in the area of the transport path therespective component of the pushers and of the stoppers, which isrigidly secured to said endless means, and preventing the endless meansfrom sagging.
 12. A transport and gathering system according to claim 8,wherein the guide strip of an endless means having stoppers attachedthereto is adapted to be lowered in an area ahead of the front roll,whereby the stopper means can be lowered below the supporting surface ofthe guide means in this area.
 13. A transport and gathering systemaccording to claim 1, wherein each endless means is a toothed beltguided over rolls and having attached thereto the respective pushers andstoppers.
 14. A transport and gathering system according to claim 1,comprising in addition at least one intermediate tray arranged above oneof the transport modules, the stoppers of this transport moduleprojecting less far above the transport means of this transport modulethan the pushers of said transport module, said intermediate tray beingspaced from the transport means in such a way that, when moving in thedirection of transport, the stoppers pass below said intermediate tray,whereas the pushers then engage a unit to be fed which is located insaid intermediate tray, said unit to be fed being positioned between thestoppers and the associated pushers.
 15. A transport and gatheringsystem for moving a material to be fed in a direction of transport,comprising a plurality of transport modules having input-side andoutput-side end sections, each transport module comprising: a transportmeans which includes: four parallel endless means which are guided overrolls, comprising a first set of two parallel endless means and a secondset of two parallel endless means, at least one drive for driving thetransport means, pusher means attached to each of the first set of twoparallel endless means at predetermined intervals, stopper meansattached to each of the second set of two parallel endless means atpredetermined intervals, wherein each stopper means is associated with acorresponding pusher means and is tiltably arranged on the second set oftwo parallel endless means ahead of the corresponding pusher means, whenseen in the direction of transport, and at a predetermined distancetherefrom; wherein the plurality of transport modules is arrangedrelative to one another in such a way that a respective input-side endsection of a first transport module and a respective output-side endsection of a second transport module define an overlapping area inwhich, at least over part of the length of said overlapping area, apusher means of the transport modules defining the overlapping areaengages a material to be fed that is to be transported, and wherein theoverlapping area of the output-side end section of a first transportmodule and of the input-side end section of a second transport module isformed such that the endless means of the first transport module arearranged in a first structure such that gaps are formed between theendless means in which the endless means of the second transport moduleare arranged in a second structure; wherein the pusher means belongingto a rear transport module in the direction of transport, engaging thematerial to be fed, is guided in such a way that it tilts away in adirection opposite to the direction of transport when it dives downwardsupon reaching a front roll of the rear transport module in the directionof transport; and wherein the stopper means is associated with acorresponding pusher means and is tiltably arranged on of the second setof two parallel endless means ahead of corresponding pusher means whenseen in the direction of transport, and at a predetermined distance fromthe corresponding pusher means.
 16. A transport and gathering system formoving a material to be fed in a direction of transport, comprising: acarrier unit; a plurality of transport modules attached to the carrierunit such that the transport modules are vertically adjustable, thetransport having an input-side end section and output-side end section;each transport module further comprising: a transport means in the formof at least one endless means guided over a front and a rear roll, atleast one drive for driving the transport means, and a plurality ofpusher means attached to the endless means at predetermined intervals;wherein the plurality of transport modules is arranged relative to oneanother in such a way that the input-side end section of a firsttransport module and the output-side end section of the second transportmodule define an overlapping area in which, at least over part of alength of said overlapping area, a pusher means of the transport moduleswhich define the overlapping area engages a material to be fed that isto be transported; wherein the pusher means engaging the material to befed and belonging to a rear transport module in the direction oftransport is guided in such a way that it tilts away in a directionopposite to the direction of transport when it dives downwards uponreaching a front roll of the rear transport module in the direction oftransport; and wherein a plurality of stopper means is provided suchthat a stopper means is associated with a corresponding pusher means andsaid stopper means being tiltably arranged on at least one endless meansahead of said corresponding pusher means, when seen in the direction oftransport, and at a predetermined distance therefrom.
 17. A transportand gathering system for moving a material to be fed in a direction oftransport, comprising a plurality of transport modules having input-sideand output-side end sections, each transport module comprising: atransport means in the form of at least one endless means guided over afront and a rear roll; at least one drive for driving the transportmeans; and a plurality of pusher means attached to the endless means atpredetermined intervals; wherein said plurality of transport modules isarranged relative to one another in such a way that a respectiveinput-side end section of a first transport module and a respectiveoutput-side end section of a second transport module define anoverlapping area in which, at least over part of the length of saidoverlapping area, a respective pusher means of the transport modulesdefining said overlapping area engages a material to be fed that is tobe transported; wherein the pusher means engaging the material to be fedand belonging to a rear transport module in the direction of transportis guided in such a way that it tilts away in a direction opposite tothe direction of transport when it dives downwards upon reaching thefront roll of the rear transport module in the direction of transport;wherein a plurality of stopper means is provided, a respective stoppermeans being associated with a respective pusher means and being tiltablyarranged on at least one endless means ahead of said pusher means, whenseen in the direction of transport, and at a predetermined distancetherefrom; and wherein, arranged above one of the transport modules, atleast one intermediate tray, the stoppers of this transport moduleprojecting less far above the transport means of this transport modulethan the pushers of said transport module, said intermediate tray beingspaced from the transport means in such a way that, when moving in thedirection of transport, the stoppers pass below said intermediate tray,whereas the pushers then engage a unit to be fed which is located insaid intermediate tray, said unit to be fed being positioned between thestoppers and the associated pushers.
 18. A transport and gatheringsystem for moving a material to be fed in a direction of transport,comprising a plurality of transport modules each having input-side andoutput-side end sections, the transport module comprising: a transportmeans in the form of at least one endless means guided over a front anda rear roll; at least one drive for driving the transport means; and aplurality of pusher means attached to the endless means at predeterminedintervals; wherein said plurality of transport modules is arrangedrelative to one another in such a way that a respective input-side endsection of a first transport module and a respective output-side endsection of a second transport module define an overlapping area inwhich, at least over part of the length of said overlapping area, arespective pusher means of the transport modules defining saidoverlapping area engages a material to be fed that is to be transported;wherein the pusher means engaging the material to be fed and belongingto a rear transport module in the direction of transport is guided insuch a way that it tilts away in a direction opposite to the directionof transport when it dives downwards upon reaching the front roll of therear transport module in the direction of transport; wherein a pluralityof stopper means is provided, a respective stopper means beingassociated with a respective pusher means and being tiltably arranged onat least one endless means ahead of said pusher means, when seen in thedirection of transport, and at a predetermined distance therefrom;wherein each transport module includes a guide means which is arrangedrelative to each of said endless means in such a way that, in the areabetween the front and rear rolls over which each of said endless meansis guided, each of the pushers and stoppers is engaged and guided bysaid guide means; and wherein the guide means comprises a guide stripper endless means, said guide strip being arranged above the respectiveendless means, and wherein the pushers and the stoppers consist of acomponent which is adapted to be tilted parallel to the direction ofmovement and of a component which is rigidly secured to the endlessmeans, said components being connected by means of a pivot joint, thetiltable component being adapted to be biased via a biasing meanstowards a predetermined position relative to the endless means, eachpusher and stopper being provided with a guide roll which is attached tothe tiltable component thereof, said guide roll being biased with theaid of the biasing means towards the first guide strip in the area ofthe transport path, the biasing means of each pusher means causing thetiltable component of each pusher to tilt away in a direction oppositeto the direction of transport when the guide roll moves out ofengagement with the guide strip.
 19. A transport and gathering systemaccording to claim 18, wherein the biasing means of each stopper meansacts to bias the tiltable component of each stopper of the stopper meansin such a way that the tiltable component of the stopper tilts upwardsin a direction opposite to the direction of transport when the guideroll of the stopper comes into engagement with the guide strip which isassociated with the endless means having said stopper secured thereto.20. A transport and gathering system according to claim 18, wherein thepushers and the stoppers are implemented such that they are providedwith a rotational angle delimiting means on the tiltable componentthereof, said rotational angle delimiting means delimiting, when theguide roll does not engage the guide strip, a rotational movement of thepushers and of the stoppers about the pivot joint thereof, saidrotational movement being caused by the biasing means.
 21. A transportand gathering system according to claim 18, wherein the guide meansadditionally comprises a further guide strip per endless means, which isarranged below the respective endless means, said further guide stripguiding in the area of the transport path the respective component ofthe pushers and of the stoppers, which is rigidly secured to saidendless means, and preventing the endless means from sagging.
 22. Atransport and gathering system according to claim 18, wherein the guidestrip of an endless means having stoppers attached thereto is adapted tobe lowered in an area ahead of the front roll, whereby the stopper meanscan be lowered below the supporting surface of the guide means in thisarea.